The epic tale of Cheyenne and the nightmare that might have saved her life
This story begins nearly a week ago. It was Monday or Tuesday night when I had the nightmare. I was riding in a car that Loretta was driving. We were driving through a dark woods very quickly, chasing after something that we were sure was just ahead. Suddenly we rounded a bend and found the road blocked by one of those wooden barricades. Behind the barricade the road dropped off. Retta slammed on the brakes, but the car couldn't stop fast enough. We skidded along and there was a moment of uncertainty as the car teetered on the edge of the ravine, and then we fell down, down, down and landed in a river. The car bobbed along and Retta moaned, "Oh no, oh no, oh no." I called, "Retta, are you alright! Retta are you alright!" but it turned out that I was calling this in real life, and the sound of my own voice woke me up.
So, on Saturday I was supposed to go to Florida to visit a friend, but he had an unexpected conflict and canceled at the last minute. With my day unexpectedly free I decided to follow through with a promise I made awhile back to teach Chris how to drive stick shift. We found a dirt road out in the country which was good because it meant there was no other traffic on the road, and he got plenty of practice with the lower gears. The road was muddy and deeply rutted from the recent rains, so there was a lot of slowing down and speeding up. Eventually, though, we came to a virtual lake in the road. Chris didn't want to risk it in my car so we traded spots. I couldn't turn around without backing up for about a mile, so I decided to slowly ease my way through the giant puddle. We made it, though we were practically floating at some points.
Once we were on the other side, I decided to keep driving for a minute just to give my nerves a break. We had come to a clear patch of road and it was a lovely day for a drive. I wasn't a speed demon by any means, but I was definitely driving a little faster than Chris. It wasn't anything to worry about. We were driving through open fields and could see the road for several blocks ahead.
Suddenly it was like deja vu. The trees closed in around us and now we were driving on a dark path through a forest that seemed only too familiar. We were hurrying, chasing, looking for something that might be just around the next bend. The thought wildly flashed through my mind, "I know what happens next!" and I slammed on the brakes. There was moment of uncertainty as my car teetered on the edge, but providentially this time the car stopped. Chris and I trepidatiously peered over the dashboard. The car had rocked to a halt an inch from a deep gully where the road had been washed out by rain water. Another moment and we would have driven over the edge and fallen several feet, wrecking the car and probably ourselves. We were so close to the edge that I was afraid to back up, afraid that I would roll forward an inch or two before my car kicked into reverse.
Cautiously I was able to back away from the washout. Just a few yards back there was a place that was open enough for me to turn around. Slowly I eased the car around and we crawled back into the sunshine and open fields we had come from.
So, on Saturday I was supposed to go to Florida to visit a friend, but he had an unexpected conflict and canceled at the last minute. With my day unexpectedly free I decided to follow through with a promise I made awhile back to teach Chris how to drive stick shift. We found a dirt road out in the country which was good because it meant there was no other traffic on the road, and he got plenty of practice with the lower gears. The road was muddy and deeply rutted from the recent rains, so there was a lot of slowing down and speeding up. Eventually, though, we came to a virtual lake in the road. Chris didn't want to risk it in my car so we traded spots. I couldn't turn around without backing up for about a mile, so I decided to slowly ease my way through the giant puddle. We made it, though we were practically floating at some points.
Once we were on the other side, I decided to keep driving for a minute just to give my nerves a break. We had come to a clear patch of road and it was a lovely day for a drive. I wasn't a speed demon by any means, but I was definitely driving a little faster than Chris. It wasn't anything to worry about. We were driving through open fields and could see the road for several blocks ahead.
Suddenly it was like deja vu. The trees closed in around us and now we were driving on a dark path through a forest that seemed only too familiar. We were hurrying, chasing, looking for something that might be just around the next bend. The thought wildly flashed through my mind, "I know what happens next!" and I slammed on the brakes. There was moment of uncertainty as my car teetered on the edge, but providentially this time the car stopped. Chris and I trepidatiously peered over the dashboard. The car had rocked to a halt an inch from a deep gully where the road had been washed out by rain water. Another moment and we would have driven over the edge and fallen several feet, wrecking the car and probably ourselves. We were so close to the edge that I was afraid to back up, afraid that I would roll forward an inch or two before my car kicked into reverse.
Cautiously I was able to back away from the washout. Just a few yards back there was a place that was open enough for me to turn around. Slowly I eased the car around and we crawled back into the sunshine and open fields we had come from.